Rare bipartisanship before deadline

Something strange happened in Congress on Tuesday: Leaders of both parties cut a drama-free budget deal, won immediate bipartisan support and did this all two months before deadline.

It may only be a six-month resolution to keep the government funded. But the fact that congressional leaders came together so quickly showed that neither party wanted to relive the pitched political battles over federal spending that have defined this divided Congress the past two years.

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The deal, which was reached by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and President Barack Obama, will remove one item from a litany of must-pass fiscal bills Congress must pass before year’s end or risk major repercussions to the economy. Congress must still deal with hugely consequential fights over the lower tax rates set by the Bush administration and $1.2 trillion in defense and domestic spending cuts, but removing the specter of a federal government shutdown gave both parties relief on Tuesday.

“I’m glad that we’ve been able to work this out,” Reid told reporters Tuesday afternoon. “I appreciate [Boehner’s] cooperation in this matter, and I hope that we can face these challenges ahead with the same cooperation that we’ve had in the spirit of compromise the last few days on this issue.”

Still, if Congress clears a stopgap measure into next year, it will have all but ceded its responsibility to pass appropriations bills that set government priorities. Critics say continuing resolutions fail to properly distribute money to federal programs by sustaining funding for ones that aren’t working and inadequately funding others that are effective.

The funding levels could anger some tea party conservatives who have called for deeper cuts in federal spending and have opposed sending any money to implement the Obama health care law. But many Republicans are eager to head off a contentious budget fight on the eve of a presidential election and would rather punt the issue into next year, hoping Mitt Romney will be in the White House and their hands will be strengthened on Capitol Hill.

Most continuing resolutions maintain flat-line funding from one fiscal year into the next. But there will be an uptick in money under the Reid-Boehner deal, something that could anger some conservatives itching for another budget fight.

Under the agreement, funding through March would be consistent with the $1.047 trillion level for fiscal 2013 set forth in last year’s Budget Control Act, above the $1.028 trillion called for by Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R-Wis.) budget proposal. It also is above the $1.043 trillion level for the current fiscal year called for by the law.

Votes on the continuing resolution won’t come until lawmakers return in September from the five-week recess, which begins next week. The deal is still being drafted and is free of controversial riders, Reid said. Boehner said in a statement that bill language will be written during the August recess so it can pass both the House and the Senate before the fiscal year ends Sept. 30.

Drafting the CR won’t necessarily be a frictionless exercise. It could trigger scuffles between leaders and appropriators over how much money to provide each agency.